Vehicles contain a plurality of controls that are located within reach of both a driver and a front passenger, and therefore the controls can be operated by either the driver or the front passenger. The controls, e.g. switches, knobs, buttons, rotary controllers, and user input devices, such as touch screens, are used to control and/or monitor various pieces of equipment, e.g. interior lights, radio, CD-player, navigation system, phone and air conditioning. Multi-function controls may be used to reduce the number of dedicated controls, especially where the complexity of the controlled equipment requires a reduction in the number of controls. Further, reducing the number of controls may be desirable to enable aesthetically pleasing interior vehicle designs. For example, a clean look with few controls may be preferred over perceived clutter where many different controls are present. One particularly versatile form of multi-function control utilizes touch screens which can show buttons on a display, detect where the display is being touched and correlate both button position and touch position to activate an equipment function associated with the displayed button.
The increase in functions and controls thereof that are available to the driver may also raise concerns about the driver becoming distracted while operating the vehicle. Accordingly, equipment controls or functions may be grouped into functions that can safely be operated while driving and functions that should not be operated while driving. For example, lockout protocols may be used to allow the operation of certain equipment functions only while the vehicle is stopped or the transmission is shifted into park.
Various controls or functions may also be designated as being exclusively operated by the driver. For example, keyless go systems allow the starting of a vehicle's engine with the push of an engine start button, e.g., if a wireless user identification device is present in the vehicle thereby eliminating the need to insert a key in an ignition lock. The remote ignition control device may also require that the user be within a limited area with respect to the driver's seat before the engine may be started remotely. The wireless identification device may also restrict the ability to start the engine so that only the driver can operate the engine start button.
Dual view displays are also being used in vehicles to show one image to the driver and a different image to the passenger. For example, in some dual view displays, different images are visible depending on the viewing angle. Therefore, dual view displays enable the driver to see a first image, e.g., a navigation map, while the passenger watches a second image, e.g., a DVD movie on the same physical display screen.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,009,488 (Schwartz) relates to an exemplary method for selectively locking controls available to an operator, the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference. The method actively detects when an operator accesses a control for which a lockout is desired. The active detection of when an operator is accessing a control is performed by first generating a signal, which is passed to a plate, where it is then coupled through the operator to a receiver. The signal is detected at a signal detector associated with a control so the control can react to the signal.
PCT Publication WO2004/078536 (Donat) relates to a circuit for selectively producing switching signals. The circuit is characterized in that a signal is emitted and is transmitted via the user during the actuation of the switching device. The signal is capacitively coupled into the user at the switching device. A seat heating matt can be used as a signal receiving surface. Driver and Passenger in a vehicle can be distinguished through two receivers, one located in the driver's seat and one located in the passenger's seat. If the signal path is reversed, different users can be distinguished by coupling different frequencies into each user and evaluating the received frequency at the switching device.